Letter from the President

February 19, 2021

Dear ACUA Colleagues,

I hope you had a restful holiday season and took time to enjoy those closest to you. I had the time to reflect and celebrate our accomplishments and, most of all, our resilience.

With a new year comes the opportunity to set new goals. ACUA is optimistic about 2021, as we plan to build an even stronger community to serve our industry. One way to achieve this is through continued contributions from industry leaders to College and University Auditor. The Journal provided a way for me to connect with individuals on a variety of topics, such as annual audit planning, fraud investigations, audit reporting, and even COVID-19.

I encourage you to reach out to our authors and learn from each other. I also encourage you to share your experiences in a future ACUA journal article. Turning to the Journal to gain valuable insights is just one of many benefits we have as a community. Many thanks to the authors, volunteers, and staff for showcasing their higher education knowledge.

In addition to sharing knowledge in a professional journal, ACUA is dedicated to providing relevant trainings and networking. So, you will not want to miss the opportunity to build on your professional expertise at Audit Interactive! The Professional Education Committee is hard at work, so save the dates—March 21-25, 2021. I hope to see a record number of attendees from our ACUA community.

I look forward to interacting with you on Connect ACUA and seeing everyone at Audit Interactive in March!

Sincerely,
Patti Snopkowki
ACUA President

About the Author

Patricia Snopkowski

Patricia “Patti” Snopkowski is the chief executive of audit, risk and compliance for Oregon State University. Patti leads a team that evaluates and improves the effectiveness of the risk management, control, and governance processes. The audit team provides independent and objective assurance and consulting services that improve operations and protect organizational value. The compliance team continually improves the productivity and safety of the university environment by overseeing the university’s compliance and ethics program. In addition, the office facilitates the university's enterprise risk management, which evaluates mission-critical risks and formulates effective mitigation strategies for the university's board and senior leaders. Patti reports administratively to the president and functionally to the Executive and Audit Committee of the OSU Board of Trustees through routine communication practices.

Patti’s prior experience includes serving as chief audit executive for the Oregon University System and in other leadership roles at the University of Washington, Cornell University, the Pennsylvania Auditor General’s Office, and SAFECO Corporation. Patti is a member of various accounting, auditing, and higher education organizations including the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA), Association of College and University Auditors (ACUA), and the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) serving as a presenter, in various committees and leadership roles, and as a contributing author. Patti is a recipient of ACUA’s Outstanding Professional Contributions Award recognizing her contributions to the profession of internal auditing in higher education. Patti received her Bachelor of Science in Accountancy from Pennsylvania State University and her Master of Business Administration from Colorado State University. Patti is also a licensed Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Certified Internal Auditor (CIA), Certified Compliance & Ethics Professional (CCEP), and Certified Information Technology Professional (CITP).

patricia.snopkowski@oregonstate.edu

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Letter from the President
Letter from the President
Letter from the President